Family affair for Molinari brothers

Francesco and Edoardo Molinari were hoping to turn the BMW PGA Championship into a family affair as good weather produced equally good scoring at Wentworth.

Francesco held a one-shot lead going into the third round after rounds of 70 and 68 in miserable conditions which claimed notable scalps in defending champion Luke Donald and Ryder Cup team-mates Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Ian Poulter.

But his elder brother Edoardo was just one of a large number of challengers to emerge from the chasing pack as the field made the most of the improvement in the weather in the European Tour's £4million flagship event.

Edoardo, who partnered his brother in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor in 2010, had gone to the turn in 32 and birdied the 10th to get to six under alongside Lee Westwood, Matteo Manassero and Richard Bland.

Westwood had predicted he was the man to watch after talking up the improvements in his short game since his move to Florida over the winter, but it was a brilliant approach to the par-five fourth which set up an eagle from just four feet.

The 40-year-old saved par on the sixth after his second shot flew over the green before picking up another shot on the seventh, while Bland had carded four birdies in the same stretch and Manassero birdied the second and fourth.

Spain's Alejandro Canizares had briefly moved into the lead with birdies at the first and third, but Francesco almost holed his tee-shot to the second and two-putted the fourth for birdie to improve to eight under.

The London-based Italian was one ahead of Canizares and Scotland's Marc Warren, who had birdied the fourth and fifth after opening with three pars.

Scotland's Richie Ramsay had set the clubhouse target at four under, partly thanks to a "Seve-like" escape on the 18th in his round of 66.